AC is plauged by entitlement, inefficiencies and lack of an intiative culture. We've all heard the stories of senior rampies, cabin crew or agents either selling their seniority shifts or manipulating a dated system all with the support of a union rep close at hand. Having said this, there are great employees from all operations, but there are too many that are not... I always felt sympathetic for the pilots at AC, the rest of the operation needs a serious overhaul.
I agree to a point, the job is certainly more precarious as an expat, but labour laws or lack of it isn't the reason AC can't compete. Overall it's a fundamental difference in work ethic, attitude and training. Look at Cathay and Singapore, including EK, the crew makes the passenger feel like they matter. The overall product and experience is vastly superior in all classes. Do you see any cabin crew as you board an AC flight? Perhaps all chatting in the galleys about dividing up their naps. How about the aircraft waiting for an AC marshaller whom saunters in from a chat with his union buddies? That used to drive me bananas. The attitude outside the flight deck at AC is shocking, and with the merger with Canadian it just became worse. The front line agents, rampies, cabin crew and a few other unions must somehow completely shift the internal culture for the better. Good luck